Hesketh Arms, Southportback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
A beautiful setting, a pleasant pub inside although some of the character has been stripped out.
Went yesterday for lunch I ordered a bacon and avacado salad for �8.95 and a bowl of chips, my partner ordered gammon and chips.
After 20 mins it arrived, the salad looked like a dogs dinner all thrown together with no pride, and on tasting the avacado it was rank tasted off. My partner took it to the bar and the response was the avacado is frozen, WHAT! I could not believe it, they did offer to change it but I just felt safer with the chips. When my partner went to pay they did not charge for the salad and my partner said the whole salad was tired, the bar man then replied the tomatoes where all cut fresh that morning I mean oh my god it was 2 in the afternoon so potentially it could have sat around for over 5 hours thats not what I call fresh the chef needs re training or get a job in macdonalds. Then the bar man gave my partner a free pint...... where is the justice in that I suffer and my partner gets the freebie. On a positive note the pub has a nice atmosphere for a drink just avoid the food or have the gammon thats hard to ruin by any standards.
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Has become very popular again, and offers three real ales. I just wish they'd get Landlord back on! The drinks here are dearer than across the road at The Bold. Food is ok. Sitting outside on a summers evening getting drunk can be very nice.
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visited on a Sunday, weather was nice so no tables outside but plenty inside
had a good pint of Black Sheep, really friendly bar staff and the pub was very clean
Food was below average avoid eating if you can
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First time back, after several years, and this is no longer a pub, but a restaurant with a bar. Reasonable selection of beers and the bar service was ok. The food menu seemed very comprehensive and reasonably priced. However, the food ranged from good to bad - the chicken pie was so dried that both the pastry and the chicken were fixed to the pie dish. Fortunately, the fault was recognised and the price refunded.
Not somewhere I would go for a drink, but I may go back to try another meal.
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Just called in for a couple the other week when we were in Southport for a wedding. Having read the previous few reviews, I was expecting the worst,and was therefore delighted to find not only an attractive and pleasantly situated pub, but also attractive and pleasant young ladies behind the bar, who were prompt and efficient, and really left me nothing that I can think of to complain about!
We didn't eat there, but friends had done so the the previous night,and reported very favourably.
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Ordered the most expensive steak on the specials menu, asked for it to be well done and it arrived in a suspiciously fast 5 minutes together with our other meals. Not surprisingly the steak was rare, so rare that it was almost mooing!! Pointed this out to the waitress who, without asking what we wanted or explaining what she was going to do, whisked the plate away. 5 minutes later the plate was returned with the same piece of partially eaten steak having been thrown back on the grill and cremated! When we told the waitress that we weren't happy with this she told us that it would take 20 minutes to cook a fresh one! We asked to speak to the manager and when he eventually appeared we voiced our complaint to him about the standard of food and waitressing. He immediately became angry and defensive, raised his voice and tried to accuse us of being rude, stating that it is normal practice in every restaurant to reheat food and again tried to deflect attention away from himself by accusing us, his customers of being rude for raising the complaint. He eventually walked away, calling over his shoulder with as little grace as he could muster that he would refund the cost of the steak! AVOID AT ALL COSTS UNLESS YOU APPRECIATE BADLY COOKED FOOD, UNHELPFUL STAFF AND LICENCEES WITH A CHIP ON THEIR SHOULDER.
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Called in for a pint what a mistake waited at the bar for some three and a half minutes whilst a barman chatted to another customer knowing I was the only other person waiting to be served. I stood there like a lemon, I felt I was intruding I only wanted to buy drinks for myself and guests who had come to southport for the airshow on sat. So embarassed will not be returning.
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WARNING... ...SERIOUS RANT APROACHING... ...
Were you you were in the right pub?.......
The Hesketh arms....is a "DIOBOLICAL DISCRACE"....
I first started drinking in there 25 years ago.......
Not much had changed in all the years,it faithfully remained a local,peicefull,traditional quintisential English village pub....
They used to have a MASSIVE open Calvery on Sundays...and it was ALWAYS full of diners....
It was dimly lit,which created a soft and cozzy,warm atmosphere....
There was always laughter and banter amongest the customers,regulars and staff....so much so that regular lockins were a weekly ocourence......
Basicaly the "H" was a good old local comunity pub....
Wednesday evenings were Jazz night...or somtimes "Fag Ash Lil"..or "Blues Box" would be on and the place would be heaving,there were coach trips from far a feild,as it was that good an evening.....
Live jazz music started at The Hesketh Arms in Churchtown, Southport circa 1985-6.
The final jazz session at The Hesketh was on Wednesday 18th. December 2002. It was a very sad occasion because there were so many supporters to whom Wednesdays at The Hesketh became and has become an integral part of life.
Then the bad news came,the pub was to be �upgraded and modernised� with more of an accent on the supply of meals, and so the whole character was be lost forever.
At this time the pub was acuired by Mitchells & Butlers,the UK's leading operators of managed pubs and pub restaurants....
When the Hesketh closed for its re-fit......The place was ripped apart thus destroyed the sole of the pub.......
Ok...we.the locals..agreed it needed a spruse up...but not to the extent of what theve done .....
It now just looks like one of there many other pubs....in the same way a"Yates" or "Weitherspoons" look the same in any town....
But the Hesketh is not in a town...its in a quiet village...and it now just dosent fit in to its surroundings......
"ALL" the locals are DISCUSTED with whats happened to the place,and they all go over the road now......
Ive been in a few times and its diobolical compared to how it used to be....the only time its bussy is in the summer months due to the torisum....in winter when the passing trade dies off the place is dead......traditionaly ,its the locals and regulars that the pub relys upon to keep it going at this time...but there going elsewhere.......
This is a comdemnation of how the re-fit and managed running of the Hesketh Arms by Mitchels and Buttlers has killed it...
I supose to the tourists and passing trade,it can seam modern but traditional....but then they go back home....
Its us locals and regulars that have to live with this travesty....
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I am the new manager of the Hesketh Arms, Churchtown, and whilst Im aware some were not happy about the change, I can assure you we offer good value for money, all day, every day. I have been making some changes since I took over 6 weeks ago, and am enjoying the cosey village atmosphere Churchtown offers. I ran another pub the same as the Hesketh for 4 years, and was very successful, so I hope to change the minds of other posters here who have been dissappointed. Our new kitchen manager has just started also, and she is ensuring standards are kept at the highest level. Please visit and see what you think.
anonymous - 27 Jun 2006 15:40 |
went there with Wife and son & daughter in law and had a terrible time, place was nice we ordered food which three meals came quite quick but wife sat without food for some 6 - 7 minutes, the food was average , we thought for the price it would be good but no, also when we asked for the bill they said we had paid, we had `nt , and staff called manager, it turned out somebody had paid our bill ( dearer than theres ) so manager said pay theres which is cheaper. sad but true. Other problems but we just wont be going back. Pity
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Sad to hear of the "major renovation". Since when could the British renovate successfully? Probably killed all that olde worlde charm that the place had from the subsequent comments. Was really my favourite Sunday roast pub in Southport!
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Food no longer as outstanding as it used to be, but still perfectly edible. Pleasant enough surroundings, especially on a summer evening on the tables at the front, watching the traffic roll by.....
Main downside to the place is that the shape of the bar (square) means it is hard to tell which staff are working which part, and seemingly quite easy to find yourself in no-man's land between two barstaff, neither of whom ever quite reach you - unless you're a local regular of course, in which case your glass is miraculously refilled ahead of whoever's queueing. Much prefer the Bold across the road, not as cliquey.
anonymous - 25 Oct 2005 10:51 |
ok, finally went there after the refurbishment. Yes as expected it has lost abit of its old charm and it now feels like a "forced country pub" that is that everything is new and far to clean for my liking. But at the same time its still very relaxing and pleasent and I will be goign back there again.The staff were superb. Food is also very nice and they wernt lying when they said "A whale of a fish" ... it was huge and reasonably priced, as for the drinks they are not too bad either.. Carlsberg Export sets you back �2.50 with Stella from what i recall being 5p more. Good pub try it.
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Lovely old pub in a fantastic village green setting. Very good traditional food. Excellent cask ales. Unfortunately it's closed for a major renovation at the moment. If they mess about with it too much it could easily be ruined.
Den - 4 Nov 2004 11:35 |
Beautiful country pub idillic setting in scenic village. Great in the summer sitting outside watching village life. Service could be improved very slow to clear tables glasses etc
g - 28 Jun 2004 14:22 |
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